Alitair Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Edmond Pharma S.r.l. announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement for Alitair Pharmaceuticals to license Erdosteine, a mucolytic with antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties, from Edmond Pharma for development as an orphan drug in the United States and Canada. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Alitair President and CEO William Howard said, “We are delighted to have licensed Erdosteine from Edmond Pharma. Erdosteine is currently approved in 30 countries for the treatment of chronic bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, or COPD, and it is approved in 4 countries to treat bronchiectasis. We will seek an orphan drug designation for Erdosteine to treat bronchiectasis in the United States, which affects approximately 130,000 people.” “Erdosteine further strengthens our respiratory pipeline and is our second licensed orphan drug candidate,” continued Howard. “Erdosteine is the perfect follow-on to our recently licensed next generation xanthine orphan drug candidate, ALT-07, as we believe Erdosteine can be used concomitantly with ALT-07 to treat both CF- and non-CF bronchiectasis.”

Roberto Teruzzi, CEO of Edmond Pharma S.r.l. holding company and President and CEO of Edmond Pharma, stated, “We at Edmond Pharma are very excited to have licensed Erdosteine to Alitair. Erdosteine was discovered years ago in our R&D labs in Italy and is now successfully distributed in several markets. Erdosteine is a very safe and effective drug with a unique pharmacological profile. We are very confident that, thanks to the cooperation with our partner Alitair, Erdosteine will play an important role in treating bronchiectasis patients in the United States.”